Avatar: The Legend of the Stars
by MasterGhandalf
Summary: Two hundred years after Korra, the Avatar world has developed space travel and begun expanding into the wider universe. When a mysterious discovery triggers an interplanetary war, the new Avatar must go on a journey across the cosmos to try and bring peace - but can the Avatar's role be so simple so far beyond the familiar world?
1. Prologue: The Cycle Turns

**Prologue: The Cycle Turns**

 _Air. Water. Earth. Fire._

 _Two hundred years ago, Avatar Korra defeated the dark spirit Vaatu and ushered in a new era of harmony between the mortal and spirit worlds. After many decades, Korra passed on, and her successor was Avatar Meiyu, born to the Earth Federation. Fearing that he could never live up to Korra's or Aang's legacies, and fearing that rapidly advancing technology would render the Avatar obsolete, Meiyu withdrew from the world and focused his energies almost entirely on the pursuit of science. Through his research, the world developed ships that could fly through space and visit other planets. Though he accomplished little as an Avatar, Meiyu ensured he would be remembered as the man who gave his people the stars._

 _In time, he too passed on, and the new Avatar was born to an old family in the Fire Nation. I met her when we were both children, since my father was respected member of the Order of the White Lotus and had been selected by his peers to one day train her in waterbending. Even as a small child, Sukasai's gaze was focused on the heavens, and her passion for learning was infectious._

 _Though our people had established colonies throughout our solar system and sent expeditions to nearby stars, we still believed then that we and the spirits were alone in the universe. The year Sukasai and I turned sixteen, we learned how wrong we were, and Avatar Sukasai would face her first, and perhaps greatest, challenge…_

/

One of the most fascinating things about the way the Avatarverse has evolved is how its setting and genre reflects the passing of time. Though "martial arts epic" always lies at the heart of things, of course, we have _Airbender_ as high fantasy with a bit of steampunk mixed in, _Korra_ as urban fantasy, and even the "Beginnings" episodes reflect a sort of fairy tale/mythic atmosphere. Of all the fantasy series I've watched/read, even of those that span generations, only the _Mistborn_ saga really has something comparable. Exploring the changes into the future, therefore, appealed to me, and what's the ultimate future of a fantasy setting going to be? Space opera. So here we are.

This opening, which is inspired by the openings of the first _Airbender_ and _Korra_ episodes, albeit somewhat wordier, helps to set up the general world situation and also introduce us, in a general sense, to some important characters. Taking Katara's narrator role is, fittingly, a waterbender – in this case Hakhun, a childhood friend of our real protagonist, Avatar Sukasai. Why did I skip forward two Avatars rather than one? Two reasons – one, I wanted to give the timeline plenty of time to advance to give an appropriately high tech-level, and two, I'm more partial to fire than earth on an aesthetic level (if you've followed me for a while, you may have noticed I've written a lot of fics about firebenders…) That said, we'll eventually pick up main characters affiliated with all four elements. As for my antagonists – well, we'll be meeting them soon enough. If you were curious, I had the narration mention Vaatu rather than Amon, Zaheer, or Kuvira because I felt like it was Korra's most epic feat and the one with the most lasting repercussions – some of which may be felt in this story…

I'm not sure how often this'll update (I'm trying to work it around various other things), but I do hope to get a fairly steady pace going. If you're following _Destinies Rewritten_ too, I intend to update that one before long as well.

-MasterGhandalf


	2. Chapter 1: The Ship

**Chapter 1: The Ship**

The planet that hung in space near the edge of its star system was a cold, dark world, a world of ice and shadow, devoid of life for the entirety of its history – until now. Visitors had come from a nearby star, born on the wings of their recently-invented craft, and they had established a small outpost on the surface of the planet which they had named Xinshi. It had been little more than a mine at first, designed to extract elements which were necessary to fuel their vessels' Meiyu Drives from deep beneath the ice. Mostly automated, it had remained largely insignificant until a week ago – when something that should not have existed was discovered beneath the ice.

Now a small, sleek vessel appeared in Xinshi's orbit, dropping out of the strange not-space into which the Meiyu Drive allowed it to dip and cross interstellar distances in the blink of an eye. The ship bore a superficial resemblance to the airships the Fire Nation had invented centuries ago, though it was sleeker, and its hull was silvery in color save for the United Republic emblems painted on its brown.

On the vessel's bridge, a communications' terminal crackled to life. "This is Xinshi Base calling United Republic vessel _Yue's Legacy._ You are cleared for landing."

"Acknowledged, Xinshi Base," the ship's pilot replied. "We're coming in for landing now."

 _Yue's Legacy_ dipped towards Xinshi's surface, cruising above the icy mountains and valleys; one passenger in particular had her face plastered against a window, eyes wide as she tried to soak in every detail of the desolate landscape. Finally, the ship descended into a relatively large valley, and from there into the open mouth of what was far too regular to be a natural cave. Just after it finished passing inside, metal doors slammed shut over the entrance, and the _Legacy_ came to rest on a large open platform with other, smaller ships nearby.

A tall, nervous-looking man in green working clothes designed to be heavy enough to endure the cold waited near the new arrival's main hatch, flanked by two security guards. He breathed deeply for a moment, adjusted his gloves carefully, and then turned back to the hatch as it opened and extended a ramp downwards.

First from the ship was a middle-aged man of average height, dressed in a heavy blue coat that resembled a sleeker version of what his ancestors must have worn centuries ago. His face and hair were dark, though the latter was going grey, and he wore a short beard streaked with the same colors. His eyes were blue and regarded everything around him with interest, and he was smiling; the man in green breathed a deep sigh of relief.

"Welcome to Xinshi Base, Master Ekrad. You can't imagine how thrilled I am that the United Republic and the Order of the White Lotus sent such a respected scholar as yourself to help us with our… difficulty. I am Lao Ban, head of this facility."

"Pleased to meet you," Ekrad said, shaking Lao Ban's hand. "I brought some people with me who might also be interested in taking a look at what you've found here." He gestured back to the ship, where two more figures were descending. The first was a teenager who resembled the master enough that Lao Ban guessed they were probably related; the other wore red, but was muffled so heavily he couldn't make out any of their features.

"This is my son, Hakhun," Ekrad said, gesturing at the Water Tribe teenager. "He's planning on being a historian and archaeologist someday, and I thought that getting a good look at your discovery might give him something to write about before long. The other is my student, Sukasai."

"That's me," the muffled figure said in a distinctly feminine voice before pulling back her hood. Though it could be hard to tell these days, with the United Republic in particular being a cultural melting pot, Lao Ban thought she had the classical look of the Fire Nation with fair skin, gold eyes, and black hair. That hair was pulled back in a short tail, and the eyes – which looked all around them in wonder – were partially hidden behind a pair of glasses. She didn't look any older than Hakhun, and Lao Ban's eyes narrowed as he considered just who this girl might be and why she could be here – only to widen again as a scaly head poked out from under her heavy coat and spat out a small cloud of smoke and cinders.

"Is that…" the head of Xinshi Base murmured, extending a finger slowly; Sukasai nodded and smiled.

"A dragon?" she asked. "That's right, though technically he's just a hatchling. This is Yan." She opened her coat slightly wider and the tiny dragon slipped out, only to coil comfortably around her shoulders.

"Sukasai," Lao Ban said softly, watching the dragon with a certain amount of wariness; he'd gotten this post because he didn't mind the cold, but he wasn't exactly fond of burning things, and certainly not of lizards that could _breathe_ fire. "I've heard that name. You're…"

"The Avatar?" Sukasai shrugged. "So they tell me."

"You may know that I'm a skilled waterbender as well as a scientist and professor," Ekrad said mildly. "The White Lotus assigned me as Sukasai's waterbending teacher. I trust everything is fine with that?"

"Yes, yes, of course," Lao Ban muttered. "Now then, come with me, this way – what you came to see is down near the bottom of the base, near the mine." He turned to lead the way, his three guests following close behind.

"He's nervous," Sukasai whispered to Hakhun as they walked. "I don't much like it – and I don't like that guy. I think he's hiding something."

"Maybe he just wasn't expecting to have the Avatar dropped in his lap today," Hakhun said. "Most people don't."

"Most people want to put me on a pedestal and use me as a sign of how far our civilization has progressed," she said. "But the idea of the Avatar actually _doing_ something gets them all upset, because if someone needs to restore balance, then maybe the world isn't as perfect as everyone likes to pretend. Even Avatar Meiyu is remembered as a scientist more than for anything he did as the Avatar. But I'm getting away from myself. Lao Ban was nervous even before he knew who I was. Something's going on here. Do you have any idea what they found?"

Hakhun shrugged. "Dad knows, but all he'd tell me was that it was important, and I needed to see it. You know him – he's as easygoing as they come, but he was serious about this. Whatever it is, I have a feeling it's going to change everything."

In her heart, Sukasai couldn't argue with him.

/

Once everyone was gone from the landing platform, a faint blur detached itself from the shadows inside the _Legacy's_ hatch and slipped down into Xinshi base. Following carefully down the track the base leader and his guests had followed, the blur entered the complex's main living area, a system of bare steel tunnels bored into the planet's surface. It slowly picked its way towards a door marked as a storage closet, slipped inside, and deactivated its personal cloaker.

The figure revealed was that of a girl maybe a year younger than the Avatar, dressed in a slick grey jumpsuit. Her hair was dyed a garish blue, but the skin of her face and hands was deathly white, and over her eyes she wore a pair of goggles whose red lenses even now flickered with data as they analyzed every object in the closet and reported them back to their wearer. Reaching up with one pale hand, she deactivated the scanners' visual feed, and activated her communicator.

"This is Ji Lin," she said softly. "Infiltration successful. I am in the building. Repeat, I am inside Xinshi Base."

" _Good work, Ji Lin,"_ the garbled voice on the other end replied after a brief pause; even the most advanced modern science and the same dimension-warping principles that powered the Meiyu Drives couldn't punch a signal instantly across interstellar distances. _"Get as much intelligence on the discovery as you can, and bring back a sample if possible. This could change the world; we can't screw this up. Succeed, and you will be rewarded beyond your wildest dreams. Specter out."_

"Ji Lin out," the girl repeated, and shut the communicator off. So, the plan was still the same; good. Her handlers hadn't been able to determine exactly what it was that had the White Lotus in such an uproar, but if it was big enough to send one of their best minds and the Avatar herself after it, it was important. And there were those who sought above all else to possess the knowledge and power to change the world, and they would handsomely reward those who brought it to them.

That was why Ji Lin had dedicated her short life to becoming the greatest thief Republic City had ever seen; she needed that reward. Some debts couldn't be ignored, and the only way to repay them was to go big.

She tapped the side of her goggles twice, and her personal cloaking field reactivated. Opening the closet door slowly, she saw that a grey-uniformed security guard was now standing casually outside. He didn't look like he had any idea she was here; this must be his routine patrol. Ji Lin slipped two fingers out of the door and flicked them lightly; a tiny whirlwind sprang from her hand and struck the opposite wall with a distinctive _thunk_. The guard started and spun to investigate; while he was staring at a blank wall, the hidden airbending thief slipped past him and continued deeper into the base.

/

"We're not a large operation," Lao Ban was saying. "Most of the actual mining is done by machines, of course; the majority of our personnel are techs or engineers, plus a handful of security guards, who are mostly here to protect us from each other, admittedly. People can get a bit testy being cooped up in the facility with just the same two dozen faces around for months at a time, it seems. Anyway, here we are; after you, Master Ekrad."

The manager stopped at what looked like a perfectly ordinary door; Sukasai raised her eyebrow at Hakhun in response to the surprisingly mundane sight. Lao Ban pulled the door open and stepped through, gesturing for the three guests to step inside. Sukasai followed after her teacher and her friend, one hand resting lightly on Yan's back where he rode on her shoulder – and then she stopped, eyes wide.

They had stepped out into an immense pit in Xinshi's icy surface; though they were still deep underground, she pulled her coat more tightly around herself nonetheless. However, it was not the cold wasn't what had caused the Avatar's amazement. In the center of the pit, now being held up by scaffolding and attended by both mining robots and human techs, was a ship that had clearly not been built by human hands.

It was roughly the same size as Ekrad's shuttle, and had an aerodynamic wedge shape, but their its resemblance to human engineering ceased. The ship's hull was made of what appeared to be crystal and formed a continuous seamless shell; Sukasai couldn't say for certain what color it was, because it seemed to shift slowly but continually; it had appeared violet when she entered the pit, but it was now bleeding towards blue even as she watched. At its front the vessel came to a point so sharp she imagined she'd cut herself if she touched it; at the rear were a series of nubs that looked like they must have been engines.

"It's beautiful," Sukasai found herself saying, and she meant it; the human machinery that surrounded the ship looked downright primitive in comparison.

"Come this way, please," Lao Ban said, gesturing once again for his guests to follow. He led them around the platform on the pit's edge, stopping when they arrived at a walkway that lead directly to the ship's side. Immediately above where it connected was what was unmistakably an open hatch.

"How'd you get it open?" Ekrad asked slowly.

"I'm… not entirely sure," Lao Ban admitted. "We weren't even aware the door was there until a few days ago, when one of our techs was prodding at it and suddenly it just… sprang open. Ah, there he is now."

A young man with a thin face, the beginnings of a goatee, and a somewhat scattered expression stuck his head out of the hatch – his eyes widened when he saw who was there. "Uh, hey, Mr. Lao Ban," he said. "Nothing new since yesterday; sorry. Who're the new people?"

"This is Engineer Tian," Lao Ban said. "Don't let his appearance deceive you, he's the smartest we've got, when his mind is in the game. Tian, this is Master Ekrad, Hakhun, and Sukasai." He paused for a moment. " _Avatar_ Sukasai."

The engineer's eyes widened for a moment, but before he could properly react to the news of who, exactly, had just arrived in the base, Hakhun cut him off. "You said nothing new has happened since yesterday," he said. "I'm honestly curious – what happened then?"

"Oh." Tian rubbed the back of his head, looking sheepish. "We figured out how to work what I guess was their shower, kind of by accident. Unfortunately, it took us a couple of hours to figure out how to turn it _off_. It got kind of wet."

"The systems are still working after… however long this thing's been in the ice?" Ekrad asked. "I'm impressed."

"Well, we don't really know how old it is," Tian admitted. "We just found it last week, when the mining robots dug it up. But so far, everything we've managed to turn on has been in complete working order. No idea how any of it actually _works_ , of course, but it's all so amazing!"

"Perhaps you might be interested in giving Master Ekrad the tour?" Lao Ban said rather pointedly.

"Yes, I'm looking forward to seeing the inside." The master gestured to Hakhun and Sukasai. "Come on."

Lao Ban leaned in close to Ekrad's ear. Sukasai couldn't hear what he was saying, but she did catch the words "children" and "think it wise", and to her great displeasure, the master was nodding along with them. Finally he turned to face his son and student.

"Lao Ban thinks it best if only I go aboard for now," he said. "I know you both wanted to see the ship, but I'd be more comfortable if I could have a chance to see if there's anything dangerous on board. I'm sure one of the employees could give you a tour of the facility."

"Of course." Lao Ban gestured, and one of his security guards stepped forward to stand in front of Sukasai and Hakhun. Ekrad nodded once, and then he, Lao Ban, Tian, and the other guard boarded the ship.

When they were gone, Sukasai turned angrily to Hakhun. "Did you hear what he said?" she asked. "Children? We're _sixteen!_ In some places we'd have been adults by now. Fire Lord Zuko took the throne when he was sixteen, and Avatar Korra wasn't much older when she fought Vaatu!" On her shoulder, Yan hissed in apparent agreement – or maybe the dragon hatchling just didn't like the cold.

"I don't like it either," Hakhun said, "but I don't think yelling about it will do any good. The boss here obviously doesn't want us poking around his precious project. But look on the bright side – we're _on an alien planet!_ You're the first Avatar to be able to say that – even Avatar Meiyu never actually left the planet on one of the ships he designed."

Sukasai smiled. "Well, when you put it that way…" She turned to the security guard. "I believe you were going to show us around?"

The guard, whose expression clearly said he thought he'd been given the worst assignment on Xinshi or any other world, sighed and led on.

No sooner had they passed through the door and back into the main complex, however, than Yan arched his back on Sukasai's shoulders and hissed, spraying sparks into the air. "Whoa there, little guy," she said, "calm down. What's the matter?"

"Maybe your pet just doesn't like our climate?" the guard said, rather snidely Sukasai thought.

"Wait," Hakhun said, pointing towards the end of the hallway. "What's that there?"

"That" was what initially appeared to be a strangely discolored patch on the grey metal of the wall, but Sukasai's eyes widened as she realized that it was actually a rippling effect, and that it was – slowly- moving. And, most importantly, it was three-dimensional and shaped, roughly, like a person.

"That's a cloaker!" the guard shouted; he reached down to his belt and pulled out a gleaming silver Varrick Industries handheld blaster, which he levelled at the ripple. "You, drop the cloak and put your hands up! Now!"

The cloaked figure didn't do as requested; it duck and spun and then struck out with what must have been its hands, and from nowhere rose a gust of wind that slammed into the guard and rocked him back off his feet. Even as he slammed into the wall, the figure turned and ran in the opposite direction.

"That's an airbender!" Hakhun shouted, completely unnecessarily. He and Sukasai traded quick glances, and then both of them dropped their heavy outer coats to reveal sleeker tunics and pants beneath – his blue, hers red – with heavy pouches on the belts. No sooner had the coats hit the ground than they were both off, sprinting after the airbender. Yan leapt from Sukasai's shoulders and followed swiftly behind them like a strange, scaled bird.

They rounded a turn only to find that the cloaked figure had stopped just long enough to send a slice of air shooting down the hall at waist level. Sukasai barely managed to leap over it and then struck out with one fist, sending a fireblast streaking down the hall. The figure dodged it almost effortlessly, and the Avatar thought she could hear high-pitched laughter coming from somewhere just ahead.

The fireblast impacted on the end of the hallway, and Sukasai winced; nobody had been hurt then, but if she kept firebending in these tight corridors, sooner or later somebody would be, and whoever this person was, they were too fast for her and her friend to catch up on foot. "Wait," she said, stopping and holding out a hand to Hakhun to do the same. "Let's change tactics." She grinned. "I think this place has enough ice already that nobody's going to complain about a little more."

"I think you're right." Hakhun returned her grin, and then they both raised their hands and stuck them out sharply before them. Jets of water erupted from their belt pouches and coated the floor; both benders breathed out slowly, and the water froze solid. Ahead, the blurred figure suddenly yelped and slipped; but Hakhun was a skilled enough waterbender to slide effortlessly along the ice, and Sukasai simply melted it where she passed. The blur was getting back to its feet, wobbling slightly, when they reached it; each seized it by one arm and shoved it up against the wall.

"Show yourself, now," Sukasai said.

"All right you got me," the blur said; a girl's voice. It shimmered, and then revealed a short, skinny young woman about Sukasai's age, her garish blue hair clashing quite spectacularly with her red-lensed goggles and deathly pale skin. She wore a jumpsuit that resembled those favored by the airbenders Sukasai had met before, but while theirs were mostly red and orange, hers was solid grey. "Name's Ji Lin. How're you doing?"

"She's just a kid," Hakhun said. "No older than us. What's she doing here, anyway? For that matter, how'd she get here?"

"Stowed away in your ship, genius," Ji Lin said, smirking. "For the record, the engine room is really noisy – but it was the only place I could be where that flying lizard wouldn't smell me. Just my luck I ran right into you when I did."

"Who are you, anyway?" Sukasai asked. "I can't imagine someone would stow away to another solar system on a whim, and you don't really seem like the scientific type."

"I'm here to do a job," Ji Lin said. "A job of the slightly less than legal variety, the details of which you're not scary enough for me to share. What I'm not here to do is hurt you, your friend, the professor, or anybody here on the base. So if you'll just let me go, we can all get on with our lives."

"So you're some kind of petty crook?" Hakhun asked, his tone decidedly unimpressed. "How'd an airbender end up like that? Thought the Air Nation had higher standards."

"Petty crook!" Ji Lin yelled, struggling in her captors' arms. "I'm not a _crook_. I'm a _thief_. A _great_ thief. And I'm not, never have been, and never will be with the Air Nation."

"Well, Miss Thief," Sukasai said. "Maybe you can tell your life story to Master Ekrad and Lao Ban and let them decide what to do with you. Come on, Hakhun. Let's take her."

Hakhun nodded once, and they both tightened their grips on Ji Lin's arms before hauling her all the way back to her feet. Yan circling over their heads and still hissing, they turned to take her back towards the pit where Ekrad waited and would sort this out.

They hadn't gotten more than a step before the ground rocked beneath their feet, and every light in Xinshi base went out.

/

High in orbit among the planet that had existed long before the humans had found it and given it a name, a vortex opened in space. It expanded until it seemed large enough to swallow Xinshi whole; its red depths swirled with energy and seemed to spiral down into infinity. However, the vortex made no move to devour the planet; instead, a fleet poured from its depths.

/

"Well?" Lao Ban asked. "What do you make of this?"

Ekrad shrugged. "Honestly? It's like nothing I've ever seen before in my life, but I think you already knew that." He glanced back over his shoulder at the alien ship. "I couldn't tell you what it's made out of or how it works, but if Tian is right and it can make faster-than-light trips for days at a time…" He shook his head. "The Meiyu Drives can't take us much farther than one system at a time without burning up, which is why we've only been able to explore and settle a handful of the closest stars. This technology is something else. I'd like to make a call back to Republic City and see if either the White Lotus or the University can get a bigger ship out here to tow it back home. I think we can do more with it in my lab than you can out here."

Lao Ban swallowed. "Of… of course. Right this way."

He led Ekrad over to a small communications console that had been set up on the walkway at the pit's edge. He slowly seated himself at the desk and activated the screens, then frowned. "That's… odd," he murmured. "I've never seen readings like that before…"

The words had barely left Lao Ban's mouth when Xinshi suddenly shook with such force that he was knocked from his chair and onto the walkway, and at once every light in the pit died, plunging the scene into darkness.

"What's going on?" Ekrad demanded as he pulled Lao Ban to his feet.

"I have no idea!" The base leader snapped, "but the emergency power should be coming on right… now." At that moment the lights flared back to life, dull and red now but clearly functional; in the distance, blaring alarms could be heard. Lao Ban hurriedly seated himself at the console and began furiously typing. "Just give me a minute and I can pull up exterior cams, so we can see what's going on. Xinshi's not a geologically active world, so I don't know what could have caused… oh. Oh my. I think you should see this, Ekrad."

A holographic display flared into being above the console, and Ekrad's eyes widened as he realized what he was seeing. Some sort of vast portal had opened above the planet – it resembled those created by the Meiyu Drive, but it was far larger and far more stable. And from its depths emerged ships of no human design.

They were like nothing Ekrad had ever seen in Republic City's spaceport, and they had nothing in common with the alien ship now housed in Xinshi Base either. They were monstrous things, with thick, knobby, almost shell-like hulls, and no two of their misshapen forms were alike. There must have been a dozen of the strange craft that even now converged above Xinshi, and Ekrad knew in his heart that they were coming for the base.

"Light and Darkness," Lao Ban whimpered. "What can we do?"

"I," Ekrad said softly, "have no idea."

/

No sooner had the lights died then Jin Li swept both her legs up, kneeing Sukasai in the stomach and Hakhun in a somewhat more sensitive area. Slipping from their grasp, she gave a mocking laugh and raised her arms; from her underarms and the sides of her bodysuit there extended short wings, and she launched herself into the air and glided towards the end of the ice patch. There she landed, gave a mocking wave, and began to run back towards the pit and the alien ship.

"I really hate that kid," Hakhun gasped, still doubled over.

"Come on – we can catch her," Sukasai said; she pulled her friend to his feet, and together they hurried down the corridor, turned right, and arrived at the door they wanted – just as Ekrad burst out of it, a terrified Lao Ban behind.

"Dad!" Hakhun said. "What's going on? Did you see the thief?"

"Thief?" Ekrad asked. "No – that's the least of our problems. We're under attack by… something. I have no idea what. I need your help to get as many people to the _Legacy_ and whatever ships the base has, now. We're getting out of here."

"Got it!" Sukasai and Hakhun said at once. "Is there anybody still in there with the alien ship?"

"I… yes," Lao Ban said, "Engineer Tian is still on board."

"We'll get him," Sukasai said. "Come on!"

She and Hakhun raced into the pit, even as the ground rocked beneath them once again. "I think somebody's shooting at Xinshi!" Hakhun said. "That's what's causing these quakes. But what could they want?"

"I think they want that," Sukasai said, gesturing at the ship; it seemed to be glittering dangerously in the red emergency lights. "Let's make sure they don't try to take any of our people along with it!"

They raced around the platform until they came to the bridge, and it swayed dangerously beneath them as they crossed and jumped into the hatch. Inside, the ship was every bit as eerily beautiful as outside, and, thanks to glowing panels on the ceiling, was actually brighter than it was out in the base. Sukasai glanced around quickly – they seemed to be standing in some sort of entryway that was largely devoid of other features save for hallways to their left and right. From the direction she thought was the cockpit, she heard the sound of voices. Raising one hand, she gestured to Hakhun to be quiet and follow her; together, they crept towards the voices, Yan drifting along silently above them.

"Look," the first voice – Engineer Tian – said, "I don't have any money, and I don't know what you want!"

"Anything," the second voice said – Sukasai started as she recognized Ji Lin. Apparently, the airbender had managed to sneak by Ekrad and Lao Ban after all, with the help of her cloaker. "Anything you have on the ship, any part of it that can be detached and is small enough to carry. I have debts to pay, but if you help me, I won't hurt you."

"I, um, keep all my calculations in my head," Tian said, sounding somewhat embarrassed. "And I don't want to going around tearing off parts of the ship. I think that might be, ah, _bad."_

Jin Lin swore. "Well, then," she said, "if you won't help me willingly, maybe I will have to hurt you after all…"

"No you won't," Sukasai shouted, bursting into the cockpit. Ji Lin spun, surprise written across her pale face, but before she could react Yan was on her, tearing at her goggles. The thief stumbled back with a cry and landed in what appeared to be a copilot's chair; Sukasai bent a long strand of water out of her pouch and wrapped it tightly around the girl's midriff before freezing it in place.

"Is it safe now?" Tian asked, getting up from where he'd apparently been laying on the floor. "I didn't know we had people like her out here; did she come with you?"

"Not deliberately," Hakhun said, shooting a dark glare at the airbender. "Now come on, we've got to get you out here."

"Really?" Tian asked, glancing around the cockpit. It was surprisingly spacious, Sukasai saw, holding the four of them with room to spare, and had several swiveling chairs around the edges as well as a larger one front and center, directly facing what looked like a transparent crystal window that Sukasai assumed was actually some sort of display, as it wasn't visible from the outside. What there certainly wasn't any sign of was any sort of control. "I mean, I think I'm pretty close to a breakthrough here, and if you just give me a few more minutes I might be able to figure out…"

"Listen, Tian," Hakhun said, "are you aware at all that we're under attack?"

"Really?" Tian asked again, genuinely shocked. "I had no idea. Do you know by who?"

"No idea," Sukasai put in, "and that's the problem. We don't know who they are, what they want, or what they can do. All we can figure is that they're here for the ship, so let's get you out of it before they blow you up or cart you off to Wan Shi Tong-knows-where."

The ship shook with the force of another blast, and Tian winced. "That might be a good idea," he said, and then glanced over at Ji Lin. "We taking her?"

Sukasai looked hard at the airbender, who started back defiantly. "She's a criminal," she finally said, "but she's also a person, and I don't think we should leave her to face whatever these are. We're taking her." She raised a hand and the ice that bound Ji Lin dissolved back into water and flowed into her pouch; the thief leapt to her feet with an expression both surprised and wary on her face. "Now let's get out of here," Sukasai said.

/

Ekrad stood by the _Legacy's_ hatch, directing Xinshi Base techs as they scrambled aboard. "Hurry, everyone!" he shouted. "I want to get you all out of here as soon as possible. Let's not stick around on this iceball a minute longer than we have to."

Suddenly the emergency lights flickered, and from above Ekrad could hear an ominous groaning sound, as though the ice was shaking under some vast weight. "What could that be?" he demanded.

"I don't know," Lao Ban said from beside him, "but I think we might not have much time left after all.

/

Far above, on the surface of Xinshi, one of the alien vessels came to a slow landing, sinking its claws deep into the ice. Directly ahead of it was the crevice at the base of which lay its prey; from the ship's front, a long, thin tube descended, a burning light at its end. It planted itself firmly against the ice with a hiss, and then, slowly, it began to dig down.

/

Sukasai had just turned to lead Tian, Hakhun, and Ji Lin from the cockpit when she suddenly stumbled, a dizzy feeling overtaking her. Something was here… something old… something strong… and she doubled over, clutching her head. Deep within her subconscious she felt something stirring, something which she thought she'd buried long ago, but she had no time or ability to force it down now. That presence, however, did not seem hostile towards her; instead it too was curious and afraid of whatever power was even now closing in on Xinshi. Then, all at once, both sensations faded and Sukasai was left panting on the floor of the alien vessel.

"Are you all right?" Hakhun asked, bending down beside her. "You just… collapsed."

"You didn't feel that?" She asked; all three of her companions shook their heads.

"Must have been Avatar stuff, I guess," Hakhun said as he helped Sukasai to her feet; Yan landed on her shoulder, _chrrr_ ing nervously. "Come on; we've got to go."

"I don't think there's any more time for that," Sukasai whispered. "Look!"

Directly in front of them, the ship's hatch was closing of its own volition; Ji Lin barely had time for a disbelieving cry before it closed completely. The four of them turned and sprinted back to the cockpit, not knowing what else to do and hoping there was some way to get the door open again. Tian flung himself into the main chair.

"Come on, come on," he growled. "Work with me here!"

At once, the crystal panels flashed brightly as if in affirmative, and from the ceiling directly above Tian's head descended what looked almost like a helmet attached to a crystalline cable. Sukasai tried to shout a warning, but before she could the helmet enveloped Tian's head; he said perfectly still for a moment, and then his eyes widened.

"It can talk!" he shouted excitedly. "The ship's talking to me! It's confused… it just woke up when it sensed the invaders… and its afraid… but it says it can get us out of here!"

"Getting us out of here sounds good!" Ji Lin shouted. "Tell it to get going!"

"Preparing for take-off in three… two… one… and here we go!" The ship lurched beneath Sukasai's feet, and she, Hakhun, and Ji Lin stumbled into three of the other chairs. Then, as gracefully as if it had never been imprisoned in the ice for however long it had been, it leapt into the air; from the viewing panel the Avatar could see the sides of the pit shooting past them as the ship shot directly up from its depths and out into the starry sky.

"Look, that must be one of the enemy!" Hakhun shouted, pointing; Sukasai's eyes widened as they took in the monstrous, deformed-seeming vessel that loomed in front of them. Their craft swerved to avoid it, and the entirety of the cockpit suddenly blurred and became transparent. Looking down, Sukasai could see another of the enemy vessels lifting off from Xinshi's surface, and fought down another wave of vertigo.

"And there's the _Legacy_ ," Hakhun added, and indeed Sukasai could see it, and several of the colony's ships, taking off behind the enemy. "Dad's all right – the attackers look like they're ignoring him. He must have thought we didn't make it, though, or else he wouldn't be leaving. Does this thing have any communications? "

"Wait a minute on that; they're ignoring him because they're targeting us!" Ji Lin yelled. "Hey, tech-boy, does this thing have any weapons?"

"At the moment, I'd settle for just escaping," said Sukasai. "How fast is it? Maybe we can get home. Can it do faster-than-light?"

"Better than anything we've got," Tian said. "All right, baby – get us out of here!"

The space outside the windows suddenly seemed to glow with a brilliant violet light, and when it faded and Sukasai could see again, they had left the battle far behind.

/

"The alien ship is gone!" Ekrad said as he watched from the cockpit of the _Legacy_. "Was that my son and Sukasai aboard, do you think?"

"It must have been," Lao Ban said, looking more nervous than ever. "The greatest discovery in human history _and_ the Avatar, both gone on my watch. What a nightmare! But we have at least one thing to be grateful for – look!"

True enough, the invaders' ships were even now turning and flying back into their great vortex; once the last one had vanished, it gave one final swirl and then broke apart, leaving empty space behind.

"They must have only wanted the ship," Lao Ban said. "Well, let us be thankful for small mercies."

"I'm more concerned about if – when – they'll be back," Ekrad said darkly. "And most of all, I want to know where my son and my student are. You were the one who convinced me to take off when that enemy ship landed; if we never find them, I promise you, I won't forget."

Lao Ban gulped audibly.

/

"Where are we?" Sukasai asked, staring out over the unfamiliar stars.

Tian was silent for a moment, obviously communing with the ship, and then he turned to look back at the Avatar with haunted eyes. "Far from home," was all he said, and everyone on the bridge felt a terrible sinking feeling in their gut.

/

 _Just a few quick notes/clarifications here. First. I deliberately made the Meiyu Drive (this AU's faster-than-light engine) only capable of comparatively short jumps to give a reason why the Avatar-world's people were able to set up small outposts in other star systems but have yet to encounter any form of intelligent alien life (which, as this chapter proves, is definitely out there…)_

 _A bit of clarification on Ekrad; he's a scientist, a professor at Republic City University, a high-ranking member of the White Lotus, and a powerful waterbender – the last being why he's Sukasai's mentor for the moment (though she's known him and Hakhun since she was first discovered as the Avatar as a kid). Sukasai herself is intended to be distinct from both Aang and Korra; she's more introverted than either of them, generally more of a thinker than a fighter (though she is, of course, fully capable of fighting when necessary), but she's starting to chafe at the fact that the world as a whole seems to feel like it doesn't need the Avatar to take an active role any longer._

 _Yan is probably less than a year old; there could really be no other choice but a dragon for Sukasai's animal companion, but taking a full-sized one on a spaceship didn't seem like a wise idea, so she gets the conveniently travel-sized version instead. Ji Lin has a bit of Kai in her in terms of being an airbending thief, but she comes from a darker place and is deep in debt to some very dangerous people, though it'll probably be a while before we delve too much into that. Tian is a non-bender, which I didn't have a good place to put into this chapter, and he's our tech guy and the one person to really be able to interface with the ship._

 _We've met some of our antagonists this chapter in the form of the mysterious attackers; they've not got a lot of depth at this point because, hey, they're supposed to be mysterious. We'll meet some more antagonists next chapter who'll hopefully be a bit more interesting._

 _-MasterGhandalf_


	3. Chapter 2: Empire

**Chapter 2: Empire**

"Tian," Sukasai said after staring out the front window of the alien ship for what felt like an eternity, "what did you _do_?"

The engineer threw up his hands. "I didn't do anything!" he protested. "I just told the ship to get us out of there, and it jumped us here. Don't ask me why, or where 'here' even is."

"Well, can you tell it to take us back?" Hakhun asked. "Or at least take us back to the homeworld? Last we saw, those… whatever they were… were still attacking, and we have no idea whether anyone's still alive. My _dad_ 's back there!"

"Look, I'm telling it to go, but it's not going," Tian said. "Believe me, this thing has a mind of its own. It took us here because it wants us here, and now it's staying put –I just have no idea why."

"I don't think we're staying put, actually," Ji Lin said, pointing out the window. "Look; the stars are moving. We may not be making another lightspeed jump, but we're definitely still moving."

She was right; Sukasai realized that the starfield was slowly rotating, and no sooner had she processed this fact that what could only be a planet came into view before them. It loomed large enough in their view that it must have been close, and from what the Avatar could tell, its surface was grey and pockmarked – lifeless. "This looks like the middle of nowhere," she muttered. "Why would the ship bring us here?"

"I think that's why," Hakhun said, pointing. Sukasai's gaze followed his finger, and her eyes widened at what she saw. Another ship, made of the same strange crystal as their own, had just come into view, moving steadily towards them. It was not, however, the same model – this ship appeared to be much larger, and had swooping wings along its side and a fin along its back, and there was something about it that gave a distinctly military impression.

"So," Tian finally said. "Anyone have any idea if they're friend or foe?"

"Well, we _are_ flying one of their ships," Sukasai pointed out. "Maybe will be lucky and they'll think we're friendly?"

"Don't count on it," Ji Lin said, shaking her head. "We may be flying one of their ships, but we're not _them_ , whoever they are, and we have no idea how to pretend to be. Take it from a professional – they're going to think we stole it. And I doubt they'll be happy."

/

Captain Kantai'alyrna of the Most Glorious Imperial Navy of Imbrailin shifted in her command chair as she regarded the holographic image on display before her. "Well?" she asked. "What do we have?"

"It appears to be one of our scout ships, my lady," said her second-in-command, Commander Indre'alik, as he looked up from his station. "But it's an older model, one we haven't used in centuries, and it's made no effort to hail us and has ignored our attempts at communication. It must have a crew or its mind wouldn't be active, but either they don't know how to control it or don't want to communicate. Either way, I can't escape the conclusion that this vessel was stolen from our people."

"I agree," Kantai said; she stood with her arms folded behind her and regarded the half-dozen Imbrailin officers who formed her bridge crew. "This is an offense against the Empire that we cannot allow to go unpunished, and if the ship is as old as it appears, we might learn much from examining its memory. Lock it in a forcefield and bring it into the docking bay." The captain reached up and brushed the talisman that hung at her throat with one slender hand. "I wish to question the thieves myself."

"Yes, Captain!" the officers chorused; Indre bent over his station with his hands running furiously across the controls so that the strange vessel could be captured as quickly and efficiently as possible.

/

"Ack!" Ji Lin exclaimed. "We're moving towards them! Why are we moving _towards_ them?"

Tian planted his hands on the ship's controls, his eyes slipping out of focus. "They've got us in some sort of energy field," he said. "I think. The ship's not doing this on its own, but it either can't or won't tell me what's actually going on."

"Great," Hakhun muttered. "So, does anybody have any idea what we should actually be _doing_ right now?" He glanced over his shoulder at Sukasai.

For a moment, she felt like snapping at him – _why are you looking at_ me? – but then she sighed, knowing full well what response she'd get. The young Avatar stroked Yan's head for a few moments as the other ship grew larger and larger in their view, drew a calming breath, and finally spoke. "Well, whatever they're doing, I don't think we can fight our way out of it," she said, "and least not without knowing what it is we're dealing with. Whoever they are probably don't speak our language, but maybe we can communicate to them that we're not their enemies. If not…" she opened her palm and sparks danced in it, "well, it'll be easier to fight them when we're not sitting turtleducks out here."

Tian and Hakhun looked skeptical, but both of them nodded. Ji Lin's expression was one of complete disbelief. "Are you _insane_?" she demanded. "We have no idea what we're getting into and it's entirely possible they'll kill us on the spot for messing with their ship, which they obviously want back. I don't care if you're the Avatar, I am _not_ handing myself over to potential enemies just on your say so!"

"Well, I don't think you're going to have much choice," Hakhun said. "Look!"

Sukasai turned back to the front viewport, and Ji Lin did likewise; they were coming up now on the other ship's underside, and she could see that there was some kind of opening that they were being guided towards. The violet crystal structure was almost mesmerizing this close; it emitted a faint glow, and luminous patterns danced across its surface. Sukasai would bet her bending that this was a warship, and yet it had been constructed with what appeared to be a very keen eye for beauty, and she found herself wondering just who – or what – the creatures who had built it were, and what sort of priorities they had. Certainly their vessel was like nothing she had ever seen, save for the one in which she currently rode.

Their ship was in the bay now, and as it passed through the hangar's opening Sukasai could hear some sort of energy shield snap shut behind them. They came to rest gently on the bay's floor, and almost as soon as they landed she could see what was unmistakably a patrol approaching through the front viewport.

The creatures were generally humanlike in shape, it seemed, though they were looked to be a bit taller on average (Sukasai decided she'd need to see them closer to judge that more accurately). They were clad from head to foot in sleek armor that appeared to be made from the same material as their ship, with featureless helmets and short spurs on their elbows. Sukasai frowned as she regarded those; she couldn't see the point of them, unless they were somehow part of their wearers' bodies. In their hands, they carried long crystalline tubes that had the unmistakable look of weapons. The creatures marched in two rows of four each, and in front walked one who was tall and slim even by the aliens' standards, and whose armor was shot through with veins of gold - that had to be some sort of marker of rank.

"So, Tian," Sukasai said, "do you have any idea how long you can keep the hatch on this thing shut?"

Tian shook his head glumly; beside him, Ji Lin swore angrily and tapped a hand to the side of her goggles. Sukasai realized what was happening as the air around the thief began to shimmer, but she barely had time to react before the cloaking field activated and she vanished. The Avatar's eyes could barely track the blur through the air as Ji Lin fled the cockpit, but she had bigger worries.

"Coward," Hakhun muttered angrily.

"Let her go," Sukasai said. "Tian, what're our guests doing?"

"They're almost at the hatch," he said. "The ship isn't talking to me, but I think it's confused about something. Not sure I can make it do anything right now."

Sukasai sighed. About what she'd expected, then. "Well, alright," she said. "We might as well say hello and try to convince them that we're not thieves. Come on." She turned and hurried from the cockpit, the two young men following close behind and Yan watching alertly from her shoulder. They reached the hatch just as its edges flared with bright violet light and it swung open.

The eight ordinary alien soldiers immediately poured inside, levelling their weapons at the three humans. The officer followed closely behind; he (she? It? Even they? Sukasai couldn't answer) was unarmed and glanced at his prisoners with inscrutable, hidden eyes before speaking a rapid series of phrases in a strange, lyrical language.

Sukasai held up her hands. "I can't understand you," she said. "My name is Avatar Sukasai, and this is Hakhun and Tian. We didn't steal your ship and we're not your enemies. Look, I'm unarmed." She held her arms out flat and turned her palms up. Of course, a firebender was never truly unarmed, but _that_ bit of information wasn't one she intended to share just yet. She was trying to make peace with these people, not start a fight. "We just want to go home." She met the officer's helmeted gaze and didn't blink.

The officer paused for a moment, then reached up and removed the helmet; Sukasai's eyes widened at the sight. The alien's face resembled a human's, far more than the Avatar has expected, and so far as she could tell was unmistakably feminine. Her skin was a pale blue, almost blue-grey, and her hair, which was bound back with an intricate silver clasp, was silver. Her eyes were solid gold, without iris or pupil, and her ears came to sharp, knifelike points. Her lips were lavender, and as she opened her mouth, the Avatar could see that her canine teeth were noticeably longer and sharper than a human's – _a predator's teeth_ , Sukasai couldn't help but think. At her neck, where it had been hidden by the helmet, was a golden brooch of elaborate design with a single, brilliantly red gemstone set in the center.

For a brief moment Sukasai found herself wondering why a military commander bothered wearing such a fancy piece of jewelry under her armor, but then the alien reached up and brushed the crystal with one hand. It flared once with brilliant light and then dimmed to a steadier glow; the alien nodded once and then spoke again.

"Do you… this… understand?" she asked hesitantly, but it was unmistakably in the native language of Sukasai's homeworld. "Do you understand my words?" As she continued speaking, her struggles noticeably lessened and her diction was improving – as impossible as it seemed, that brooch had somehow enabled two species who had never encountered one another before this moment to communicate!

"Yes," Sukasai said as her initial astonishment passed. "I understand. My name is Avatar Sukasai and my friends are Hakhun and Tian. We didn't steal your ship, and we just want to go home. Whoever you are, we're not your enemies."

"That remains to be seen," the alien said coolly, and her gold eyes gleamed. "My name is Kantai'alyrna, and I am the captain of this vessel, the _Zhavaan_. We are in the service of the Imbrailin Imperial Navy, of which you are now prisoners. You will come with us now, and you will be questioned. We will determine if you are what you appear to be."

Hakhun pushed forward. "Didn't you hear what she said?" he demanded angrily, "we're not your –" he was cut off suddenly as one of the soldiers slammed the end of his weapon into the waterbender's shoulder. There was a flash of light and a crackle of energy and Hakhun fell back with a sudden yell. Sukasai ran to his side and caught him before he fell; Tian gulped audibly and Yan hissed.

"What was that for?" the Avatar demanded.

"You are flying a stolen Imbrailin vessel," Kantai'alyrna said in that same coolly imperious tone. "You intruded into Imbrailin territory unannounced and without permission. These offenses are themselves minor, but speak to the potential for worse things. You will be questioned to determine if you are telling the truth. If you are, you shall be released to go where you may, but your ship is ours. If you are lying, we shall learn why, and you will be punished. The Imbrailin are a just people, but we do not take kindly to those who would deceive us."

"And if we chose not to be questioned?" Sukasai asked, her temper frayed past the breaking point.

Kantai'alyrna allowed a faint smile to touch her lips. "You are on board an Imbrailin battleship, outnumbered a hundred to one by my crew, and you are unarmed – and do not think that you can improve your odds by taking me hostage. I would not prove easy prey. I do not think you have a say in the matter."

For a moment, Sukasai was half tempted to charge the captain and pray for a battle fierce enough to trigger the Avatar State. _Then_ Kantai'alyrna would see who was easy prey – but no. That was a firebender's aggression thinking, not reason. The Avatar State wouldn't help Sukasai fly through space or get her and her companions home. She needed time to plan, and to convince the captain of her innocence.

"Very well," she finally said, holding out her wrists. "We submit to your questioning." Behind her, Tian did the same, as did Hakhun at her side. Kantai'alyrna nodded once and her soldiers stepped forward, putting aside their weapons to place bindings on their captives' arms. Then the three humans were lead out of their vessel, and towards whatever fate awaited them.

/

A shadow clung to the salvaged vessel's roof, all but invisible so long as it stayed still. It watched the encounter between the Avatar and the alien captain play out, and shook it's head at the girl's idealism; the shadow had told her something like that would happen, and now it had. Still, the shadow was in no mood to gloat – it too was spirits-knew how many lightyears from home, and alone, but it also sensed opportunity. Surely the shadow's benefactors might pay handsomely for information on these so-called Imbrailin and an analysis of this potential new threat.

Two alien soldiers were left behind in the ship after the prisoners were marched away; they were clearly meant to stand on watch for any others who might be hiding on board, but they did not notice Ji Lin as she carefully slipped past them and out of the hatch.

/

Sukasai found herself marched away from her companions by two of the guards; they took her some distance from the hangar down a long, faintly shimmering corridor and then thrust her into a small room, empty except for what looked like a pair of crystalline chairs facing one another. Then they both stepped out of the room and the door shut behind them, leaving the Avatar alone.

Sukasai didn't waste time; she ran to the walls and began to run her hands across them, trying to find some sort of seam, something she could potentially use to break out, but nothing. Maybe an earthbender could force their way out of this prison, but that was the one element she had no training in – and it was entirely possible that whatever the _Zhavaan_ was made from, it wouldn't even be something a bender could control. Sighing in resignation, she slipped down into one of the chairs, took Yan into her lap, and began to scratch him on the back of the head; the tiny dragon gave a faint, contented _chrrr_.

Suddenly the crystal door opened and Kantai'alyrna strode inside; it closed behind her. The captain wasn't wearing her helmet, and Sukasai saw that she had taken off her gauntlets and the armor on her forearms as well. The Imbrailin's fingers were tipped with small but sharp-looking claws, and as she seated herself in the other chair the Avatar saw that a bony, slightly curved spur extended a few inches back from each of her elbows. _That explains why they were on the armor_ , Sukasai thought. _They actually_ are _part of her body._

Kantai'alyrna folded her hands in front of her, and Sukasai saw that she wore a large bracelet on her left wrist, similar in design to the brooch at her neck; it too was set with a large gemstone. Whatever function it served, however, the Imbrailin didn't activate it; she merely brushed her hand against her brooch again, and then returned it to her lap when the gemstone flashed.

"There," Kantai'alyrna said. "Now we may speak comfortably again, and away from prying eyes. I have reviewed intelligence with my second-in-command and have further questions for you; it is my hope you will cooperate." When Sukasai didn't respond, she continued. "You called yourself "Avatar". I believe this isn't part of your given name, but my talisman is having difficulty translating it. Is this some manner of religious title, perhaps?"

"Something like that," Sukasai said, voice carefully neutral.

"You do not need to be hostile to me," Kantai'alyrna said. "As difficult as you may find it to believe, I'm not – yet – your enemy. You say you did not steal the scout ship we captured you in. I will give you the chance to tell me your side of the story. This is your chance to convince me of your honesty."

Sukasai sighed. "Fine." She proceeded to launch into an abbreviated retelling of her trip to the base on Xinshi and how she, Tian, and Hakhun had ended up escaping from the attackers in the ancient ship – she carefully left out any reference to Ji Lin, deciding not to launch the crew of the _Zhavaan_ into a hunt for the airbender thief. Whatever else she was, the girl was human, and she hadn't done anything terribly wrong yet – she deserved what protection Sukasai could give her. Kantai'alyrna watched impassively, hands folded in her lap, but when the story mentioned the invaders and their strange ships, her golden eyes widened almost imperceptibly. The Avatar wasn't sure what that meant, but she knew it was likely very important, and she carefully filed it away in her memory.

Finally she finished speaking, and Kantai'alyrna nodded. "As much as you might think otherwise, I find that I believe you," the captain said. "Your words have the ring of truth to them, and that you salvaged the scout ship is supported by the fact that your pilot seemed to have very limited control when we captured you. I believe that your ship sensed danger, and its own mind took over and jumped to the nearest coordinates where it detected an Imbrailin vessel – the _Zhavaan_. I do not know how it became entombed in the ice, but this is a matter worth pursuing."

"So, does that mean you're going to let us go?" Sukasai asked, barely daring to hope. "Maybe even take us home?"

Kantai'alyrna's smile was wintry, and quickly killed that feeling. "I am afraid not," she said. "You see, I previously mentioned that I had conferred with my second-in-command, and he discovered most interesting information. As it happens, your race is _not_ unknown to the Empire's database. We have scouted your homeworld in secret over the past few cycles, and it has been marked."

"Marked for what?" Sukasai asked, dread suffusing her being.

"Invasion." The captain's voice was level, but there was a chilling finality to it. "For generations the Most Glorious Imbrailin Empire has expanded, taking countless worlds under its wing. Yours will be next; perhaps not this cycle, or the next, but soon. Do not think of this as an end, but a new beginning, for soon the Empire's light shall shine over your world and usher in a new age of which you can barely dream. But you cannot be permitted to return there until it has truly become a protectorate of the Empire. You will be transported to Imbrail, to the Supreme Throne, and there you shall wait until what must be has come to pass."

Sukasai leapt to her feet, fire blazing around her hands. "No!" she shouted. "I won't let you do this to my home!" She leaped forward, a pair of fireblasts arcing from her palms, but the captain was ready. She too leapt to her feet and raised the arm on which she wore the strange bracelet; the gemstone on it flared to life, forming a circular shield that radiated outward from the stone, and the fireblasts impacted on it harmlessly. Then Kantai'alyrna struck with a single blow from her open palm that sent Sukasai reeling back into her seat.

"I am disappointed," the captain said. "Less ascended lifeforms often have this reaction when they learn of the Empire's destiny, but I had expected better of you."

"Why?" was all Sukasai could say; Yan, now resting on her shoulder, raised his head and hissed angrily at the Imbrailin.

"Why?" Kantai'alyrna repeated, faint amusement in her voice. "Because, child, in the beginning of time the universe was chaotic, unformed, _unfinished_. Then the gods looked down upon it and beheld that their work was not yet done, and so they forged a race of beings called _Imbrailin_ and told them to go forth, to time the chaos, to forge a peace and harmony that would stand for all eternity, a shining light for all living things to behold and admire. That is who we are – we who bring order from chaos, harmony from discord, beauty from rawness. Someday, your people will understand, and be grateful."

Sukasai looked at her coldly. "So you're just another bunch of imperialists," she said. "Well, my people thought like that a long time ago, and it ended with a madman who tried to show his power by burning a whole continent to ash. Keep your pretty speeches, captain. We in the Fire Nation remember where that kind of thing led us, and we say _never again_."

"You understand nothing," Kantai'alyrna said, her calm unshakeable. "But you will. Guards, take her away."

/

Some time later, Kantai stood on the bridge of the _Zhavaan_ , one hand stroking her chin as she regarded her second-in-command.

"You're sure about what the human girl was describing?" Indre'alik asked.

"Without a doubt," Kantai replied. "The descriptions of the attacking vessels were too exact to be anything but the testimony of an eyewitness. The Enemy _is_ on the move."

"The other two prisoners appear to corroborate her story," Indre said, regarding the display on his datacrystal. "I admit I'm curious as to what the chaos-bringers wanted with that insignificant planet; perhaps it's buried in the memory core of the scout ship."

"Can you access anything?"

Indre shook his head. "Not yet," he said. "The engineers are reporting that the ship is confused, and is reacting … negatively to them, somehow. As if they are not what it expected when it came here. Nonetheless, I believe that can get it to open up to them, given time."

"Good," Kantai said. "I am curious about the one I spoke with – _Avatar Sukasai_. A curious title. She seems ignorant of talismans, but she has… powers. She conjured fire from the air and tried to attack me with it. Search the records regarding humans again, and see if you can find any information on this ability – and any meaning behind the title _Avatar_."

Indre clapped both hands over the center of his chest in salute. "Your will be done, my lady."

/

Ji Lin crouched near the entrance of what she assumed was the alien warship's brig, weighing her options. The Avatar, looking unharmed but furious, had just been marched into a cell further down the long, otherwise-featureless hallway, and the engineer and the waterbender had been thrown in a few minutes later. Running away from the ship, Ji Lin decided, had been a mistake, but she wasn't going to be able to fix it alone. She could sneak around without any trouble – by some stroke of fortune, her cloaking shield seemed to hide her from the aliens even better than it did from humans – but she couldn't escape from this place on her own. She needed someone who could use the ship, at least a little bit, and that meant Tian, who was currently stuck in prison just a few yards away.

Sneaking down there would be easy enough, as would taking down the guards. She was pretty sure the cell doors opened and closed to a touch from the alien's hands, but getting those would be child's play once they were unconscious. Suffocating Sukasai and Hakhun enough to knock them out would be harder, but well-within an airbender's repertoire. Then all she'd need to do was grab Tian and make a run for the hangar.

On the other hand, they might have to fight a lot more guards along the way. Ji Lin had to admit she was pretty good in a scrap, but having to protect Tian would make things harder. Having the Avatar and a waterbender along might be very useful; and maybe, if they got home, her backers might pay her handsomely for winning the Avatar's trust. And, ji Lin had to admit, some part of her hated the idea of leaving Sukasai and Hakhun here, trapped and at the aliens' mercy.

Sighting, she leaned back against the wall, struggling to decide what she should do.

/

"Invasion?" Hakhun demanded. "Are you sure?"

"Yep, I'm sure," Sukasai said, slumping against the cell's wall. "The captain was _very_ specific. I don't know how long a cycle is, but apparently we're going to get hit within a couple of them."

"But, you're the Avatar, right?" Tian asked. "Can't you, you know, _do something_?"

"What can I do?" Sukasai replied. "I've not completely mastered the Avatar State, which means I can't be as powerful as I'm capable of whenever I feel like it, and even if I could and managed to take out every Imbrailin warrior on this ship, it still wouldn't change anything. We can't fly it, and unless we can either warn Home or manage to stop things on Imbrail, then we're stuck." Yan nuzzled her cheek sympathetically, but she ignored him, staring down at her hands. "This is maybe the greatest threat our species has ever faced, and I can't do anything about it. I'm probably the worst Avatar in a thousand years at least."

Hakhun sat down beside her and put an arm around her shoulder. "Don't say that," he said. "Kyoshi and Aang and Korra all probably felt the same way sometimes, but I know you and I believe in you. We'll find a way out of this, and then we'll figure out how you can stop us from getting conquered."

Sukasai smiled, but her heart wasn't in it, and she said nothing. Instead, she glanced around the small cell; three plain crystalline walls, a floor, and a ceiling, and one side open to the corridor and filled from top to bottom with thin energy beams – too tight to fit between and, as they'd found, extremely painful to make contact with. A pair of armored Imbrailin soldiers stood guard on either side; neither of them appeared to have devices like Kantai'alyrna's brooch and couldn't understand what their captors were saying.

After they'd been thrown in, Hakhun and Tian had told similar stories to Sukasai's, though they'd been interrogated by lower-ranked officers rather than the captain – apparently she wasn't the only one on the ship with that sort of translator. Neither of them had been told of the invasion plan either, it seemed, or gotten the lecture on the glorious destiny of the Imbrailin Empire. That, by fate or chance, had been Sukasai's alone, and only seemed to further make the point that she was the one who should deal with it – if only there was some _way…_

She was snatched from her thoughts by a sound of terrible hacking and coughing from outside the cell. Sukasai and her friends ran to the bars only to see both guards on their knees, choking and clutching at their throats, before finally they collapsed and lay face down on the floor. The Avatar's eyes were wide in shock, and she was sure her mouth was hanging open – she wasn't sure whether she should be pleased or appalled by this unexpected turn of events.

"So," Tian finally said, "can anyone else explain exactly what just happened?"

 _"_ _Say please,"_ a cheerful female voice said, and then the air shimmered and a skinny, pale girl in red goggles and a grey flight suit appeared between the guards. Ji Lin shot the shocked prisoners a jaunty grin, grabbed one of the guards' hands, and pressed it firmly against a panel beside the cell door; the energy bars shimmered and vanished.

"Okay… how?" Hakhun finally managed to say.

Ji Lin shrugged. "These people need to breathe the same as we do. I snuck in cloaked and bent the air out of their lungs – I didn't keep it up long enough to kill them, but I did choke them out. Wasn't sure if those controls would still respond if they were dead. Now, are you all going to just stand there staring in awe at my brilliance, or are we going to get out of here?"

"We're in the middle of an alien battleship in space," Sukasai said, crossing her arms. "How, exactly, are we going to escape?"

Behind her goggles, Ji Lin rolled her eyes. "We've got a ship too, remember?" She pointed at Tian. "You think you can get that thing to fly us out of here?"

The engineer scratched the back of his head. "Uh, maybe?" he said. "I think I'd need a bit more time with it, and even then, I can't promise anything."

"Well, it's the only chance we've got, so you'd better," Ji Lin said, jabbing a finger at his chest. "I am _not_ dying here before I get my business back home squared away. So let's get moving, people!"

Hakhun and Tian both looked to Sukasai, the Avatar nodded once, then turned to spring along the corridor after Ji Lin.

/

"The prisoners have _escaped?"_ Kantai demanded incredulously.

"We have footage here," Indre replied, pulling up a hologram of the four humans barreling though the outer guard post of the brig. _Four!_ The captain thought. _Where did the pale one come from? How did we_ miss _her?_ Whatever her origins, this intruder showed herself capable of sweeping guards aside with a gesture, as if the air itself obeyed her commands; where that failed, Avatar Sukasai followed up with fire. The Supreme Throne, Kantai decided, had been mistaken to classify these creatures as insignificant primitives; they had powers that no Imbrailin could match. Yes, Captain Kantai'alyrna of the _Zhavaan_ would have _quite_ a talk with the Eyes of the Empire when she returned to Imbrail.

She tightened her fist. Well, the humans might have powers she'd never imagined, but so too did she have powers beyond the reach of their meagre knowledge. "Lieutenant," she said in a calm, even voice. "Have my war talismans brought to the bridge, along with a squad of marines. I will handle this matter personally."

/

Sukasai ran into the hangar, just behind Ji Lin and just ahead of Hakhun and Tian. A small group of Imbrailin guards stood near their ship, and they jumped to attention when they saw the humans come running towards them. They raised their weapons to fire, but Sukasai and Ji Lin both raised their hands and thrust them forward; a massive blast of wind caught the aliens and slammed them back against the walls.

The prisoners reached the ship's hatch; Tian hurried inside, Ji Lin right behind him. Hakhun and Sukasai turned to look at each other, nodded, and prepared to board, when a sudden flash of movement caught the Avatar's eye. She turned and saw what looked like a squad of heavily armored Imbrailins heading towards them, a figure who seemed all-too-familiar in the lead.

"Get in," Sukasai said quietly, not taking her eyes from the approaching enemies. She grabbed Yan off her shoulders and thrust the protesting dragon into Hakhun's arms. "I'll hold them off."

"I'm not leaving you out here alone!" Hakhun said, but Sukasai put a hand on his arm.

"You don't have any water right now, and I don't want you to get hurt," she said. "I'm the most powerful, and I can bend fire and air anywhere. It's got to be me. Tell Tian that whatever he's doing with the ship, he'd better do it fast. Now, go!" Hakhun regarded her grimly, nodded once, and turned and ran into the ship.

Sukasai turned back to the Imbrailins, who were now fanning out around her. She took a deep breath, centered her mind and will, and then flung out her hands in a sweeping motion. A wave of flames shot from them, striking the deck and forming into a wall between her and the alien soldiers. For a moment, the Avatar breathed a sigh of relief – had it really been that easy? – but then a single Imbrailin vaulted over the flames and landed lightly before her. This warrior's helmet shimmered and its front became transparent; the face of Captain Kantai'alyrna was beneath it.

"Give up now," the captain said. "You cannot escape."

"We'll see about that," Sukasai replied, raising her hands and trailing sparks from them. Kantai'alyrna merely smiled her cold smile and raised her left arm; she wore her bracelet around her armored forearm now; its gemstone flashed once and the energy shield from before sprang into being. With her right hand she drew something from a sheath at her side; not a long-barreled weapon like the other warriors used, but what appeared to be a sword with a long, curved blade made, as so much of the Imbrailin technology was, from a smooth violet crystal. Kantai'alyrna swung her sword through a few passes and it began to glow from within with a faint but distinct light; small bolts of energy crackled along the blade.

For a moment the two women circled one another, taking the other's measure. Then Kantai'alyrna struck, bringing her sword through a sweeping stroke; violet fire flashed from the blade. Sukasai dodged aside, mentally thanking her airbending training, and the bolt of energy from the Imbrailin weapon struck the ground where she had been, leaving a smoldering scorch-mark. Then she brought her hands up and delivered a blow of her own, a fireblast that streaked towards Kantai'alyrna and was stopped only when the captain brought her shield up to intercept it.

Then Kantai'alyrna was charging forward, moving faster than a human of similar size and build would have been capable of; she slammed into Sukasai and bore her backwards, the spur on her elbow digging into the Avatar's side. Sukasai grunted in pain, planted her feet, and seized her opponent's arm; a sudden jerk sent Kantai'alyrna flying over her shoulder, but the captain twisted in midair and managed, barely, to land on her feet.

"You are skilled, human," the Imbrailin panted. "I almost regret that I may have to kill you."

"I regret that your people are planning to attack my planet," Sukasai returned. "Life's tough like that."

"Indeed." Kantai'alyrna raised her sword again, energy dancing along its edge, but before she could strike Sukasai hit the blade with a fireblast. To her surprise, it didn't knock the weapon from the Imbrailin's hand; instead, the sword seemed to absorb the fire, and now it burned even brighter, the energy within it now leaping and twisting along the blade in chaotic patterns. Kantai'alyrna smirked.

"That's… that's not technology, is it?" Sukasai asked weakly.

Kantai'alyrna shook her head. "Not as you would understand it," she said. "You have your ways, Avatar. We have ours." Then she brought the sword down in a sweeping blow; it was nowhere near close enough to strike Sukasai, but it wasn't meant to. A wave of violet fire poured from the sword; the Avatar raised her hands to shield herself from it, but this was not ordinary fire. She could feel it beating against her defenses, and then she was struck from her feet and flung to the deck; she knew no more.

/

Tian seated himself once again at the chair in the ship's cockpit and planted his hands on the control panel. Once again he could feel the ship's mind awakening, could feel that it recognized him, though it hadn't expected him to return.

"Come on, buddy," the engineer muttered under his breath. "Show me how to get us out of here."

The ship's mind paused, considering; Tian didn't understand it in words, exactly, but he realized he knew what it was thinking. He wasn't one of his creators; those were the Imbrailin. And the ship didn't want to help him against them. And yet, it had been centuries since the ship had flown in the service of the Imbrailin Empire, and its creators were no longer what they had once been. It was troubled by this, almost as troubled as it had been by the invaders who had attacked the icy world where it had laid hidden, and it was unsure what it should do.

"You can help us," Tian muttered. "Help us, we'll help you, right? We'll help you figure out what happened to your people and who those other guys were, if you'll just get us out of here." The ship paused, still unsure. "Oh, come on. Work with me here!"

The ship paused again, then seemed to come to a decision. Suddenly Tian felt information pouring into his mind, information on flight, lightspeed, engineering, _weapons_ … and he realized that the ship had given him all the knowledge he needed.

Tian looked over his shoulder to where Hakhun and Ji Lin watched expectantly, and grinned. "Let's do this," he said.

/

 _Get up._

The voice echoed in Sukasai's subconscious. It wasn't the voice of any of the masters who'd taught her, or of any of her previous incarnations she knew of, and yet it was familiar to her, as familiar as her own shadow. She'd heard it before, but she couldn't place where…

 _Get up, you fool! Get up now, and fight!_

Sukasai's eyes snapped open. She was lying on the hangar deck, and Kantai'alyrna was approaching, her bright sword flashing. There was a certain grace to the captain's walk, to the way she held her sword and shield at her side, and Sukasai found herself realizing a connection between her foe's movements, the design of the Imbrailin ships, even the Empire's plans for conquest – _art_. This was a people obsessed with art and aesthetics, and it worked its way into everything they did. The Avatar was sure that this was important, but she couldn't figure out how to apply it to her present circumstances. The voice was right; she needed to get up, to fight, to _win._

She leapt to her feet suddenly, and at once a feeling of power suffused her being. Kantai'alyrna stepped back, strange eyes wide, an expression of shock crossing that not-quite-human face, and Sukasai couldn't help but smile; the Avatar State was a shocking thing when one was seeing it for the first time. She could feel herself tapping into a vast reserve of power, stretching back to Meiyu, to Korra, to the incarnations that the Avatar had been made to forget and all the way back to the beginning, to the spirit of light herself. Kantai'alyrna was not prepared to face this power; no Imbrailin alive had ever seen its like.

Sukasai raised her hands and gave a single mighty shout. A blast of wind like a hurricane burst from her, instantly dousing the wall of fire, but it was no longer needed. The force of the blast lifted Kantai'alyrna and flung her the whole length of the hangar; she slammed into the far wall with a loud crack, slid to the bottom, and lay still.

Sukasai breathed deeply and let it out, and felt the power drain from her. She didn't give the Imbrailins time to react; turning and dashing at full speed into the ship. To her surprise and relief, the hatch closed immediately behind her.

"Tian!" she shouted. "You'd better have this thing working!"

"On it!" he shouted back. "This thing's amazing – I think I can definitely get us out of here. Good to have you back on board, Avatar, but you'd better sit down. This might get a little bumpy."

Sitting down sounded like a wonderful idea; Sukasai slid to the floor, exhausted, while Yan flew over and curled about her shoulders. The ship shuddered and then lifted from the deck, and as the Avatar's head drooped she thought she could feel it begin to shoot out into space.

/

"All right, baby," Tian muttered. "Show me how to do this." The ship was shooting out of the hangar now, but they wouldn't get very far if that energy field was still active. Weapons, they needed weapons, where were… there. He planted his hands firmly on the console, and suddenly his mind was aware of the entirety of the ship as if it was his own body. Tian grinned, and then a pair of crystal spines rose from the ship's rear hull. They fired bolts of energy, once, twice, which impacted the side of the _Zhavaan._ The bigger ship's hull pulsed, and then a small group of crystal protrusions went dark. Tian didn't know how he knew it, how he'd _done it_ , but they were free.

The engineer gave a loud whoop and grabbed a startled Ji Lin into a hug as the scout shop shot away from their captors and out into the star-flecked void.

/

Kantai groaned and pulled herself to her feet as Indre'alik and a squad of security personnel entered the hangar. The lieutenant hurried over to his captain and helped her stand, but she waved him away.

"They escaped?" Indre asked.

Kantai snorted. "Obviously," she muttered. "We underestimated these aliens, badly. But they are a potential threat to the Empire's plans, and their ship may have knowledge of the Enemy that we can use. We must capture them again, at all costs, and until we do so, we are all shamed in the eyes of the Throne of Blades."

She looked out the mouth of the hangar towards the void of space, and her eyes narrowed. "I will find you, _Avatar Sukasai,"_ she hissed, clenching her hand tightly around the hilt of her talisman sword. "And then you will see why it is that for a thousand cycles, the Imbrailin Empire has stood supreme."

/

 _We meet our second group of main antagonists this chapter – the Imbrailin Empire. They were deliberately designed with a bit of the "Space Elf" aesthetic in mind (as I wanted them to be obviously humanlike and relatable, unlike last chapter's invaders), but I deliberately gave them creepy eyes, fangs, claws, and elbow spurs to add an unsettling, somewhat feral aspect to their appearance. As Sukasai realized, this is a species to which artistry is everything, and there's a lot I'm looking forward to doing with their culture, but they're still a conquering, ruthless empire, and so from our heroes' perspective that makes them pretty solidly the bad guys. Kantai'alyrna (Kantai is the familiar form of her name, but Sukasai doesn't know that yet) is planned to be our Zuko for this story, a major recurring enemy who will hopefully get a lot of development and complexity._

 _I wanted to give the Imbrailins some sort of "magic" to run parallel to bending, but I didn't want to just copy it, give them traditional wizardry, or even something too much like the Force. We'll learn more about talismans and how they work as the fic progresses, but in general each object provides a specific effect. The average Imbrailin has one talisman (or none); Kantai, as decently important officer, has three (all of which she used at various points in this chapter), more high-ranking Imbrailins might have upwards of a dozen, making them extremely powerful._

 _I don't go too much into the Imbrailin government here, but to clarify a bit, the leaders of the Empire are called "Thrones". The Throne of Blades is the overall head of the military. The Supreme Throne is the ultimate ruler of the Empire (and is the name of their homeworld's capital city as well as the title of a person). More on this later._

 _Anyone have any ideas about the voice Sukasai's hearing? That's going to be pretty important later…_

 _-MasterGhandalf_


End file.
